Tip #1: Sit down with your travel companions and make a list of “must-sees”. Unless you plan to be on the road for a very long time, keep it fairly short. I’d suggest 1-2 attractions for every three days.
Tip #2: Map out your route incorporating the must-see destinations. Make a rough timeline, but be flexible. Don’t try to plan every minute. Build extra time into your schedule so you can stop and see The Museum of Medical Oddities (Philadelphia) or The Birthplace of Melvil Dewy (Adams Center, New York) as you see signs for them along the highway.
Tip #3: Speaking of mapping, if you are planning to go off the beaten path at all, I’d highly recommend investing in a GPS tracking system. Unless you like stopping to ask the locals for directions. We did not like it much at all.
Tip #4: Bring lots of distractions, for example:

• Movies, books on CD, coloring books, and/or simple craft projects are great for taking little minds off the long, long road ahead. But don’t give them out all at once. Your little travel companions will figuratively devour them within the first 200 miles and then whine about how bored they are. Try giving out one new prize a day.
• My dear friend Gina packed a bag for our daughter containing enough envelopes to open one every 100 miles. In each envelope she placed a simple prize. Really simple – like a sticker, a travel brochure with pretty pictures, a scripture quote, a pretty rock. It didn’t really matter what was in the envelope. Just having a little something to look forward to really helped the miles pass by.
• I also kept a secret reserve of fun snacks for those times when we needed a little boost. I highly recommend Banana-cream Reeces, if you can find them. (If you do happen to find them, can you tell me where? I can’t get enough of those things, but they are hard to come by.)

Tip #5: Know your limits, and those of your travel companions. Stop well before you need to. And a hotel with a pool after a long day? Heavenly.
Tip #6: Institute this bathroom rule rule: “When one goes, we all go.” Enough said.
Tip #7: Take pictures of everything! Not only will those photos trigger memories of the trip-of-a-lifetime, but they will also make an awesome slide show to entertain that pesky Amway salesman that keeps coming over.
Tip #8: Most importantly, don’t forget to pack your sense of humor. Things will go wrong, but getting angry about it won’t help. And later, you really will laugh about it.

Come to think of it, tip #8 should be followed a closely as possible in every situation.
I’ll try to take my own advice.
Ha ha hee ho.
And now I’m off to call my insurance agent again. Maybe I’d better put him on speed-dial.

PS: If you have any travel related questions, please leave a comment and I’ll get back to you.